If Armenia Had Accepted My Proposal, Thousands of Soldiers from Both Sides Would Have Survived: Aliyev

Aliyev stated that his personal relations with the Russian president allowed Moscow and Baku to reach an agreement and accept the trilateral statement, which he claims signaled Armenia's capitulation in the Nagorno-Karabakh war. He made these remarks in an interview with the Russian publication 'National Defense.'

“I had proposals. It is already known that these proposals were also supported by the Russian side; however, the Armenian side rejected them and, I believe, made a tragic, fateful mistake. If they had accepted my proposed plan, which was supported by Russia back then, their defeat would not have been as humiliating, and thousands of soldiers, both from our side and the Armenian side, would have remained alive,” he said.

Aliyev also mentioned that Putin had asked him not to insist on Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan signing the trilateral statement in the presence of the leaders of Azerbaijan and Russia. “The President of Russia is a very subtle man; he treats everyone with great respect. I said that I would not insist; I do not need any additional moments related to the humiliation of Pashinyan, because this humiliation is not just of a person, but of the country, and we cannot allow that,” Aliyev added.